The scandalous past of Princess Mette-Marit

When Crown Prince Haakon of Norway announced that his girlfriend, 28-year-old Mette-Marit Tjessem Hoiby, would be the future Queen, many Norwegians were horrified.

Why would the Prince choose a single mother as his bride? To make matters worse, she was a 'commoner'. Surely, he could find a partner with royal blood?

There were fears the Prince's choice would mean an end to the monarchy.

Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway's sordid past was uncovered when she joined the monarchy. (AP/AAP)

Mette-Marit, a former waitress with a wild past involving partying and recreational drugs back in the 90s was not quite the fairy tale princess people expected the Crown Prince to choose as his bride.

As a single mother who was once a fixture on Norway's partying scene, she was a far cry from the usual model of a future queen.

But days before the wedding, something happened that made the public see Mette-Marit in a new light. She faced the media and spoke from her heart.

The scandals

In the lead up to the wedding, Norwegian newspapers were filled with gossip about the Princess-to-be, who entered the relationship with Prince Haakon with her then-four year old son from a previous relationship. The couple had already shaken the establishment because it was the first time a future King had a live-in girlfriend.

Norwegian Crown Prince Haakon shocked his people when he announced his engagement to Mette-Marit. (AP/AAP)

What the public wasn't entirely impressed about was the fact that Mette-Marit was not your typical princess, due to her colourful (some would say 'dubious') history. Oslo royal-commentators described Mette-Marit as "more Fergie than Diana."

In other words, she had a past – even though her past might not have been considered terribly scandalous outside the royal family. Still, it was racy enough to result in countless negative stories in the press.

It wasn't long before Mette-Marit's partying ways were splashed across the newspapers.

The Prince faced a barrage of criticism, with some claiming he was required to set a good example to his 4.5 million subjects. The problems arose partly due to the Prince insisting, when he first started dating Mette-Marit, that there was nothing in his girlfriend's past that would be an issue should they decide to marry.

But when the media started investigating, it wasn't long before Mette-Marit's partying ways were splashed across the newspapers.

It's worth noting that, unlike the British royal family, the Norwegian royals are allowed more privacy, so the headlines involving Mette-Marit were considered to be shockingly invasive.

Claim to the throne

Mette-Marit and Prince Haakon began dating in 1999 after being introduced by mutual friends; they were engaged just six months later. Both were said to be devastated by the brutal treatment of Mette-Marit as the Norwegian media focused on her past, digging for dirt and splashing their findings across the front pages.

The constant headlines took its toll on the couple. Prince Haakon later admitted he'd momentarily thought of giving up his claim to the throne as a result of the harsh criticism.

"It would have been strange if the thought hadn't entered my mind. But I've never seriously considered it. We believe in the monarchy," he later told the media.

There were also fears that Mette-Marit's son, Marius, would be at a disadvantage as he grew up in the shadow of the monarchy but without being able to accede to the throne (only children born in wedlock were given that status). Also, any children born to Mette-Marit with the Prince (and there would be two) would be regarded as being of a higher status than Marius, who was unofficially a 'half prince.'

To make matters even worse, the media revealed that Mette-Marit's late father Sven had married a stripper half his age.

Mette-Marit's son, Marius (centre), would only ever be a 'half-prince' while his siblings would be true royals. (EPA/AAP)

Luckily, Mette-Marit's former partner, Morten Borg assured her that he wouldn't cause any trouble, despite what he referred to as "insane media pressure" to release intimate photographs of their time together.

The biggest supporter of Mette-Merit was actually Prince Haakon's father, King Harald who had faced a similar battle when he was forced to persuade his father, King Olav, to allow him to marry a commoner, his childhood sweetheart Sonja Haraldsen. Sonja eventually became Queen but it took King Olav nine years to give his approval to the marriage, which is still going strong today.

Facing the media

The relentless gossip eventually became too much for the couple, who decided to face the media and address the rumours once and for all. In a highly emotional press conference in August 2001, the future Crown Princess of Norway publicly and tearfully apologised for her past.

"We overstepped the limits."

"My youth rebellion was much stronger than many others. That resulted in me living quite a wild life," Mette-Marit told the media."

We overstepped the limits. It was a costly experience for me, that I took a long time to get over. I would like to take this opportunity to say that I condemn drugs. I cannot make these choices again, even though I would wish I could."

"I hope that I can now avoid talking more about my past, and that the press will respect this wish."

The Crown Prince and Princess wave to the people of Norway after their wedding. (AP/AAP)

Following the press conference, opinion polls showed that most Norwegians were not bothered by the prospect of a future queen with a "wild past." Days later, tens of thousands of people cheered in the streets as Mette-Marit arrived to the church for the wedding on August 25, 2001 – it was Norway's first royal wedding since the marriage of then-Crown Prince Harald to Sonja Haraldsen in 1968.

Family of four

In 2014, Prince Haakon and Mette-Marit, who are parents to Princess Ingrid, Prince Sverre and Mette-Marit's son Marius, agreed to be interviewed by Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet. The prince spoke glowingly of his wife, saying she has a great talent of connecting with people.

"Her empathy is a talent. The same thing happens with the children. If they have problems, they go to her. She knows how to deal with them well," Prince Haakon said.

Mette-Marit (third from right) is now a beloved member of the Norwegian royal family. (AP/AAP)

"Before I say something negative, I think twice. "You don't have to focus on the negative. It's better to concentrate on the good things," Mette-Marit said.

As for Mette-Marit's son Marius Borg Høiby, he's now aged 20 and is known as Norway's most eligible bachelor and heartthrob. Perhaps not being given an official royal title is no longer an issue for him, if it ever was at all.

These days Mette-Marit is one of the most popular royal members in Europe, her 'wild past' long forgotten.